Feminist Manifesto by Mina Loy
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Daily Archives: May 16, 2014
My Photobiography
This is a picture of my sister, my brother and I. I am not sure what year but I must have been a year or so. My mother says so. Unfortunately this is the only picture of me as a baby. I was told that we did not have a camera back then. We couldn’t afford to have a camera and all the pictures were taken in studios, privately. This was one of those days my parents took us to the botanical garden in the beautiful city of Mersin in Turkey. I don’t know who took our picture. My mother does not even know now. My dress must have been white or light pink I am not sure…my mother is not even sure now. My sister’s dress is floral. It must have been dark red prints, maybe. Or black prints. My mother is not even sure now. My expression is priceless. The sun must have been shining on my face. A pair of squinty eyes with chubby cheeks. My sister and my brother are hugging me tight with one of their arms and they have one of their hands on top of my hand. This sure was something planned I believe. My sister is holding my other hand so I won’t push their hands off of my hand and ruin the picture, I believe. Now that I look at this picture, I realized how my brother smiles the same way still to this day. His smile still gives me comfort and assurance. He has always been the one person in my life that makes me laugh. How come he couldn’t make me laugh during this photo shoot? He must have been exited to take his first picture also. This must have mean he does not have a baby picture at all. My mother says so.
Anishinaabe
Anishinaabe
Definition: possibly reflecting a traditionalist’s viewpoint with a certain moral dimension – refers to “the good humans”, or good people, meaning those who are on the right road/path given to them by the Creator.
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anishinaabe
Found in: The Shawl by Louise Erdrich
Quote: “And in that moment of knowledge, don’t you thin, being who she was, of the old sort of Anishinaabeg, who thinks of the good of the people first, she jumped, my father, n’dede brother to that little girl? Don’t you think she lifted her shawl and flew? (last page, last paragraph).
Knowing this word made me understand how the narrator suggested a reconsideration of his father’s past by explaining his sister’s personality as being a person who is kind beyond kindness and would do anything for others. By being an Anishinaabe, she might have scarified herself for the sake of the baby.
Almanac
Al·ma·nac – Noun
Definition: An annual publication including calendars with weather forecasts, astronomical information, tide tables, and other related tabular information.
Source: http://www.thefreedictionary.com/almanac
Found in: Biography of a Dress by Jamaica Kincaid
Quote: “My mother saw a picture on an almanac advertising a particularly fine and scented soap and this picture of this girl wearing a yellow dress with smocking on the front bodice perhaps created in my mother the desire to have a daughter who looked like that or perhaps created the desire in my mother to try and make the daughter she already had look like that.” (page 203, 2nd paragraph)
In this quote the narrator is describing how her mother saw a picture of a girl on an annual magazine who was wearing a yellow dress which became one of the reasons why her mother had made her the yellow dress for her birthday to take a picture with. She mentions her mother wanting to make her look like the girl in that magazine.
Wharf
Wharf – Noun
Definition: A flat structure that is built along the shore o a river, ocean, etc., so that ships can load and unload cargo or passengers.
Source: http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/wharf
Found in: The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
Quote: “Out of another I get a lovely view of the bay and a little private wharf belonging to the estate.” (page 3, last paragraph).
In this quote the narrator mentions how out of her window in her room she has a great view of the bay and a ship dock.
Arbor
Arbor – Noun
Definition: a shelter of vines or branches or of latticework covered with climbing shrubs or vines.
Source : http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/arbors
Found in : The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
Quote: “I always fancy I see people walking in these numerous paths and arbors, but John has cautioned me not to give way to fancy in the least. (3rd page, last paragraph)
In this quote the narrator who is looking out of her window starts daydreaming about people walking along the vine paths and how her husband thinks daydreaming of that kind is not good for her. I understand that how her husband made her believe even to think about beautiful path ways are dangerous for her treatment.
Passé
Passé – Adjective
Definition: no longer fashionable or popular
Source: http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pass%C3%A9
Found in: There Was Once by Margaret Atwood
Quote: “Forest? Forest is passé, I mean, I’ve had it with all this wilderness stuff. It’s not a right image of our society, today. Let’s have some urban for a change.” (1st page, 3rd line)
Throughout this short story, the narrator tries to breakdown the stereotypical fairytale of Cinderella. Back then maybe this might have been the case where the typical Cinderella story might have taken place in a forest but in today’s society people in poverty are known to be in urban areas. This is a way of the narrator’s attempts to demolish how stereotypical we can be.
